Arm-rest for violinists



(Model) W. H. BRADY.

ARM REST FOR VIOLINISTS.

No. 247,796. Patented 001;. 4,1881.

, UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICEQ WILLIAM H. BRADY, OF HACKENSAOK, NEWJERSEY.

ARM-REST FOR VlOLlNlSTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 247,796, dated October4, 1881.

Application filed February 14, 1881.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. BRADY, acitizen of the United States, residing at Backensack, in the county ofBergen and State of New Jersey, have invented. certain Improvements inArm -Rests for Violin Players, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to a rest for the left arm of a violin-player,whereby he is the better enabled to hold his arm in the proper positionfor fingering without fatigue.

To enable the player to properly control the strings of the violin it isnecessary that he should throw his elbow well in toward the median lineof the body, so that the fingers can play freely and firmly over allparts of the finger-board. This position of the arm is unnatural, and itrequires long practice on the part of the player to assume it for anyconsiderable length of time with comfort, and even then the strain willinterfere with the free play of the fingers.

The object of my invention is to provide a rest or support for the armjust above the elhow that will serve the double purpose of a Test toprevent fatigue, and a guide and sup port to keep the arm in the properposition withoutstrain or effort on the partof the player. To this end Ihave invented the rest shown in the accompanying drawings, in which-Figure 1 is a view, on a small scale, showing the position of the restwhen attached to the person of the wearer and the position of the arm ofthe player supported on the rest. Fig. 2 is a plan or top view of therest, viewed in a plane nearly parallel to the face of the rest. Fig. 3is a rear view of the rest. Fig. 4 is a plan or top view of the rest,viewed in a plane parallel to the back plate of the rest. Fig. 5 is anend view of the rest. Fig. 6illustrates two modifications of theattachments for securing the rest to the person of the wearer.

I may employ any suitable material in the I construction of my rest, theprincipal requirements being lightness and some elasticity; but I makethem, for the sake of economy, from japanned tinplate. The essentialcharacteristic of the rest is its form, which is fully illustrated inthe drawings.

to fit the body and provided with apertures a (Model.)

a, to take over buttons properly placed on the clothing of the player. B13 are end plates, also slightly curved, by preference, to give the restsome elasticity. To give the rest the proper shape one of these endplates is made wider than the other, the narrowest, B, being erably leftopen, partly because to close them would interfere with the elasticityof the rest, and partly because the ends would add weight. The curvedface 0 is oblique to the curved back A-that is, the axes of curvatureconverge toward the upper side or end of the rest when on the wearer,and while the axis of curvature of the back is nearly vertical when therest is in position, that of the face 0 points toward the leftshoulder.. The object of this is to make the back plate fit snugly tothe body and the faceplate to fit to the arm of the player and hold itin its proper position, or assist theplayer in doing so. The arm, whenin position on the rest, is perfectly free from the elbow to the hand,and it may, of course, be removed from the rest at will. In this I claiman advantage over strapping the arm to a belt around the waist.

In lieu of the apertures a a on the back plate, other means of attachingthe rest to the person may be employed-as, for example, hooks orbuttons, as shown in Fig. 6, may be secured to or formed on the rest andarranged to engage button-holes in the clothing.

The end plates, B B, might be simply posts or supports; or, indeed, therest might be cut from a solid block of wood or other material. I maymake the rest of gutta -percha or rubber, or other light material, andmay cover it with cloth or leather, or pad it, if the player desiresthese refinements added to it; but these form no essential part of myinvention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. An arm-rest forviolin-players, having a back plate or face adapted to fit against andbe attached to the person of the wearer, and a face or face plate curvedto fit and receive the arm of the player, said curved plate beingconnected with or attached to the back plate of the rest, substantiallyas and for the purposes set forth.

2. An armrest for violin-players, having a back face or plate curved tofit the body of the wearer and adapted to be attached thereto, a curvedface-plate to receive and fit the arm of the player, the axes of thecurves of the face and back plates being oblique to each other, and endplates to connect the face and back plates, said end plates beingcurved, and all arranged substantially as and for the purposes setforth.

3. A hollow arm-rest for violin-players, made from a thin plate or sheetbent to form the two faces A C and the ends or end plates, B B, allconstructed and arranged substantially as and for the purposes setforth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM H. BRADY.

Witnesses:

HENRY OONNETT, ARTHUR O. FRASER.

